The Heart of Black Gold Coffee Straight from the Gatuyaini factory in the Nyeri District of Kenya, this coffee is grown in red volcanic soils at high elevations, rich in phosphorus and well-drained. These growing conditions produce coffees that develop slowly into very dense and flavor packed beans, with a classic Kenyan flavor profile - bright taste and complex flavors. Coffee from the Nyeri District is known as the "the Heart of Black Gold Coffee".   SL28 & SL34 Varietals Almost 800 farmers bring their harvest to the Gatuayini wet mill. Coffee is sorted and graded, and society staff cups...

We sent a team of three to Honduras on a sourcing trip earlier this year, so they could learn more about coffee and its producers. Stefano Bizzarri, Antonio Madeddu and Pearl Café Manager Juan Pablo Martín Riba spent a week visiting spectacular places, meeting memorable people, and tasting coffee, including the Honduras El Jaguar.   We met with Don Victor Barahona, who works as the president of the board of COHORSIL (La Cooperativa Cafetalera Siguatepeque Limitada). Although COHORSIL started as a group of vegetable farmers that wanted to diversify into coffee, Don Victor shared with us that they have been...

Cool fall temperatures, the changing leaves and the anticipation of the holidays are making us want to cozy up with some warm seasonal specials. These special drinks are all available at the cafés in Chicago, Seattle and Portland now through the holiday season.  Caffè al Pepe This spicy latte is back by popular demand! A few of our cafés had to keep it on the 'by request' menu from when we introduced it last year. Made with honey, pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg, the Caffè al Pepe has an unexpected and delightful mix of sweet and spicy.  You can watch Kara...

Known as the "Heart of Africa", Burundi is a land-locked and resource poor country. Their predominately agricultural economy employs more than 90% of the population, with its primary exports being coffee and tea - making coffee the heart of Burundi, providing hope for a better future.   A relative newcomer to the specialty coffee world, Burundi's coffee production started in the 1930's and was privatized in 2009. Primarily comprised of small-holder farms, each farm averages 100 to 200 coffee trees.   Greenco Burundi carefully manages the coffee cherry selection, processing and export of coffee at several washing stations, including the...

Fazenda Primavera is the fulfillment of the dream of producer Ricardo Tavares, and is an example of the greatness of specialty coffee production in Brazil. Tavares converted the 980 hectares of land from traditional coffee production to specialty coffee, and added a state of the art drying patio, 14 electric dryers, and equipment for processing natural, pulped natural, honey and fully washed coffees. Farm operations are focused on social and environmental sustainability - production techniques minimize environmental damage, they use a power plant to recycle water used in de-pulping to produce energy, and coffee pulp is composted and used as...